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Geoboard

National Museum of American History

Object Details

Description
Many students in preschools and elementary schools learn about simple geometry using geoboards. Wooden boards with a regular array of nails pounded into them have been used to teach about shapes, angles, and number patterns from at least 1954, when the Egyptian-born English educator Caleb Gattegno published an article about the geoboard. By 1970, geoboards had reached the United States and were recommended for teaching a wide range of mathematical topics. By the 1990s, most geoboards sold were plastic and were specifically intended for use by young children. This example has a 5 x 5 square array of pegs on one side. On the other side is a circle of twelve pegs, as well as a central peg and a peg near each corner. There is no maker's mark. The object was one of a set of seven geoboards that sold with activity cards, rubber bands, and teaching notes for $39.95. It was used in a first grade classroom at Long Lots School in Westport, Connecticut, by teacher Carin Pfeiffer.
Location
Currently not on view
Credit Line
Gift of Carin Pfeiffer
1997
ID Number
2000.0010.01
accession number
2000.0010
catalog number
2000.0010.01
Object Name
teaching apparatus
Physical Description
plastic (overall material)
Measurements
overall: 1.7 cm x 12.8 cm x 12.8 cm; 11/16 in x 5 1/16 in x 5 1/16 in
See more items in
Medicine and Science: Mathematics
Women Teaching Math
Science & Mathematics
National Museum of American History
Subject
Education
Mathematics
Women's History
Record ID
nmah_904510
Metadata Usage (text)
CC0
GUID (Link to Original Record)
https://n2t.net/ark:/65665/ng49ca746a7-3aaf-704b-e053-15f76fa0b4fa

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